Olives and Old Town Cruise 2024

After enjoying our Canary Island cruise last year we decided to venue further. Our favourite Tui cruise ship, Marella Explorer, sails around the Canary Islands during our winter months then moves to the Eastern Mediterranean for the summer. We wanted to do a longer cruise but not being quite ready to travel across the Atlantic Ocean, we chose the Olives and Old Town repositioning cruise, perfect for us to try a few more sea days.

We joined this great ship in Gran Canaria although some of our fellow 'Explorers' had joined the previous day in Tenerife. Captain Voytek and his crew are amazing, working so hard to look after everyone on board, guests and crew. He's a lovely chap, very funny and very proud of his team who we met the second night before one of the Broadway Shows.

It was so lovely to be back on board and quite reassuring as we knew where everywhere was ... or so we thought.

The cabins are located along the sides of the ship, lowest number at the front (forward) increasing as you move towards the back (aft). The left side (port) are the odd numbers and starboard (right) are the even numbers. Easy... yet we still went down the wrong side looking for our cabin, long before any partying!

It was with relief and delight to finally finding our aft odd deck 9 home for the next 13 nights. A balcony cabin is a must for us, it is an added expense but we love having our own outside space and having fresh air. The cabin was very spacious with plenty of wardrobe space, an en-suite bathroom with walk in shower, a sofa and dressing table. The tea and coffee facilities were replenished everyday and although we had a mini fridge we didn't use it. The balcony had plenty of room for the two chairs and table, perfect for a quite coffee, or wine from the bar upstairs, when back from a day on shore. 

The cabin crew were brilliant, our room was always clean and tidy with our bed made each day and turned down each night. During the cruise a few towel animals hitched a ride, plenty of Marella chocolates waited for our evening return and, to our delight, Cruise News was also waiting each evening with our following days' information. Marella were going to be digital only with this much loved part of cruising but due to passenger pressure the paper Cruise News survives. 

Cabin location sorted (we still got lost now and then) the other important locations to find and remember were the bars and restaurants which are mainly aft or in the centre of the ship. There is plenty of choice of restaurants: 

Market Place - buffet style restaurant open from breakfast until the early hours (included)

Snack Shack - grab and go pool side (included)

Latitude 53 - waiter service breakfast, lunch and dinner (included) 

Vista - Italian waiter service dinner only (included)

Italian in the Mediterranean - lunch and dinner (included, book for dinner)

Tapas in the Mediterranean - lunch and dinner (included, book for dinner)

The Dining Club - fine dining (additional charge, book for dinner)

Umi Sushi - traditional sushi (additional charge, book for dinner)

Kora-La - pan-Asian cuisine (additional charge, book for dinner)

Surf and Turf - steakhouse (additional charge, book for dinner)

Most evenings we ate in Latitude 53, a beautiful balconied dining room with double height aft windows. The food is amazing with great wines including Prosecco and port with our cheese and biscuits. We had so many lovely starters, mains and desserts, I don't think there was any meal we didn't clear our plates. 

We enjoyed the company and service of our waiters so much on our first evening that we requested their area each visit, they were a big part of our holiday and have our huge thanks and appreciation.

We did dine in two other restaurants, Vista and Tapas in the Mediterranean. Vista is a Italian style restaurant where they prepare carbonara at your table in the whole parmesan cheese; our reason for dining here, I was looking forward to this non-tomato dish. It was  absolutely delicious, as was my trio of tiramisu dessert.

Tapas was a great meal too, I'm always surprised that eating small dishes can make you feel fuller than a large meal. We had a sharing platter, although I'm not sure why everything was in threes. There was a good selection of tapas including garlic prawns and chicken in white wine.

Olives and Old Towns was an all inclusive cruise but as with the variety of dining options you can add on extras. There is a wide variety of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks available on the All Inclusive package but it is possible to upgrade to Premium Inclusive which includes the Coffee Port and Whisky & Gin bar with its speciality malts and gins. There are many bars to choose from it really depends on the time of day all serving AI and PI drinks.. The Marella Explorer bars are:

Mediterranean including outer deck - open 8am until midnight

The Lounge - from 5pm to midnight with a variety of live music

Bar 53 - a quiet bar perfect for pre-dinner drinks, open from 5 until 11pm

Aperitif - serving drinks mainly for the speciality restaurants from 5 until midnight

Squid and Anchor - the pub, always plenty happening from quizzes to silent discos, 11am until late

Pool bar - including waiter service 10am through until 11pm 

Indigo Bar and Casino - opens 3pm until late

The Shack - a small bar above the pool deck open from 11am until 6pm 

On our first cruise we did upgrade to PI but last year and this cruise we chose not to. I think the only difference we noticed was canned mixers are on Premuim Inclusive but our gin and Jim Beam with pump mixers was fine. To upgrade or not is always a big discussion with fellow cruisers; some say it's a must, some don't and some just pay the extra per drink as and when.

The variety of dining and bar choices, including AI or PI, is why I feel Marella have cruising just right, everyone can choose what they want, be that upgraded cabins, upgraded drinks, speciality restaurants and even to dress up or not. Everyone can enjoy their holiday in their own way with everyone having fun together especially in The Lounge with the entertaining bar staff.

There is always something happening on board; quizzes, talks, learning new skills and the 'must have' bingo! We did play a couple of times and definitely played the last night ... usually in the Squid and Anchor there were so many players on the last day it was in the Broadway Show Lounge. The reason for the popularity... a £4400 jackpot! well done to the lucky winner, it wasn't us. 

Every evening the Broadway Show Lounge comes alive, the show cast are amazing and perform a different show every night with such variety there is something for everyone. During our cruise there were also two shows by The man they call G. He was superb and very funny, especially the late night show; a brilliant vocal impressionist with an amazing singing voice.

The show part of our evening is something we look forward to every night. After diner it was a pleasure to stroll along to forward of the ship where on entering the theatre we were always greeted with a choice of drinks, so nice to watch a show with a glass of bubbly. Every show was amazing, we especially enjoyed Revive and Le Caberet. Thank you cast and backstage crew, you were superb every night. 

Sadly there was a need for an emergency medical evacuation on one of our sea days. This happened on our previous cruise too. The Captain and Bridge manoeuvre our ship to be in the correct direction for the helicopter and from our balcony we watched in awe and admiration as the Italian Navy flew along side in very windy weather. After a few loops round the pilot held the helicopter steady whilst the casualties (two) were winched off the ship. It must be so worrying for their families and friends, we hope they are well. The skills shown by the Italian seals and Marella crew were outstanding 👏 

We have had a superb cruise on board Marella Explorer as she changed her location ready for the summer season, every day was full of fun be that on board or ashore. Thank you Captain Voytek and all the crew on Marella Explorer. Thank you too to all our fellow 'Explorers' we certainly know how to  party - we had an amazing time and will be on board again sometime soon for more cruising adventures.

The Wine Society 150 Years

The Wine Society are hosting a number of tastings to celebrate their 150 years, the recent tasting in Birmingham was focussed on their second 50 year period. The wines exhibited were defined into five categories:

Generation series - focusing on 1924 to 1974

Anniversary range - limited collection of fine wine

1936 The first six appellations in France - Cassis, Tavel, Arbois, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Monbazillac and Cognac

1964 Bag-in-Box patented in Australia - highlighting sustainability 

Making moves outside mainland Europe - changes in the wider world of wine

With such a variety of wine it was not really possible to taste in style order which is always a slight issue at large tastings using the same glass however there was plenty of water available. As there was no tasting order and table 1 was at the far end on the room we decided to start at the nearest table and worked our way around the room initially  tasting only the white wines exhibited before retracing our route to enjoy the red wines.

As with all tastings not all wines were to my taste but it was a super opportunity to taste so many varieties. All the wines were detailed in a great tasting booklet, I have reviewed the wines I photographed and a few favourites my camera missed.

Our starting wine was from the 1964 Bag-in-Box category, although this revolutionary technique started in Australia the white wine was from France (the red which we tasted later was Californian), hopefully the Wine Society will soon include a Bag-in-Box selection from the pioneering country. That said the Society's White Burgundy was a lovely wine to begin our tasting, it had a balanced minerality with a clean stone fruit flavour. 

An English sparkling wine began our 'Making moves outside mainland Europe' selection. Produced by Peter Hall who planted his Sussex Downs vineyard in 1974 Cuvée John Agard, Breaky Bottom this sparkling wine was 65% Chardonnay giving a full citrus flavour. 

Van Loggerenberg 'Kamaraderie' Chenin Blanc from Swartland South Africa drew my attention with it's striking label. In fact many of the wines at the tasting had special labels for the Wine Society's celebrations. This Chenin Blanc had lovely soft flavours of green apple and lime but was a pricey wine at £34.

Of the five categories I was most looking forward to 'Generation Series 1924-1974' as it included Domaine Jaume from France. As they are red wine producers our visit to this section of the tasting began with Cava Gran Reserva Brut, a dry sparkling wine with a toasty flavour. 

This category also included three white wines produced by the Hugel family in the Alsace region of France. Gentile was a gentle wine with a hint of minerality. The other two wines, Vin d'Alsace and Gewurztraminer, were both full of flavour and great representations of this region and it's German influences. 

My favourite white at the tasting was from the 150th Anniversary Series and was the highest priced at £45.  Surprisingly it was not a Sauvignon Blanc but a oak aged, complex, rounded Chardonnay, definitely a step above giving a true definition of fine wine. 

In my enjoyment of the Chardonnay I missed taking g a photograph but I did take one of the other white wine in the Anniversary series, Hunter Valley Semillon. A soft wine with apple and lime flavours with a dry finish. 

Staying with the fine wines we moved on to tasting the reds beginning with The Society's 150th Anniversary Amarone 2018. Fermented in stainless steel vats this blend of Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella and Oselea is then aged in new oak for 18 months. The dominant flavour for me was dried prunes but I found the wine a little too tannic although it did soften in the glass. 

The other red celebrating the Society's 150th Anniversary was Geyserville Zinfandel 2019 from California. A blend full of black fruits especially cherries and a hint of liquorice this wine had plenty of flavour, a little pricy at £39 

Two red wines I was very keen to taste were from Domaine Jaume in Vinsorbes France. We visited here in 2016 during our visit to the Cotes du Rhone region. The Jaume family are featured on the front of The Wine Society's Magazine celebrating the generations of winemakers. 

Vinsorbes Altitude 420 and The Wine Society's Generation Series Vinsorbes are both made from Grenache and Syrah grapes with their raspberry flavours and touch of spice finishes. Having visited Vinsorbes it is certainly on steep slope enjoying the south sun and breezes from the mountains. I enjoyed both of these wines which brought back great memories of our visit, one we hope to repeat one day. 

My favourite red was also from the Generation Series, Chateau Le Boscq, Saint-Estephe 2016. This northern Medoc wine was very smooth, had plenty of flavour and a long satisfying finish. '

Amongst the array of white and red wines were two that stood alone, firstly Tavel Cuvée Prima Donna Rose from Domaine Maby. I discovered Tavel on recommendation from Heather Dougherty and although it isn't a wine I often drink I really do enjoy it. It's a wine that matches perfectly to light meals especially lunches in the garden on a sunny day.

Thje second wine being a dessert wine which, like the Tavel, was in the 1936 first six appellations in France selection. Monbazillac Chateau Pech La Calvie was full of peaches and honey, a fully flavoured wine that was crying out to be paired with cheese and nuts.

The final tasting was The Society's Cognac, again celebrating France's appellations. Distilled at Chateau d'Orignac this superb Cognac had been oak aged for longer than the appellations requirement of four years. It was filled with rich flavours of dried fruits and nuts with a hint of woodiness that added to its lengthy finish. 

Wine tastings are always an enjoyable event, a chance to try wines I probably wouldn't choose for myself and to learn more from fellow wine drinkers. Our home location does not always make it easy for us to access many of the events so when The Wine Society's 150th Anniversary tastings included Birmingham we were delighted to attend. It was a great evening with some superb wines, thank you. 

Happy Easter

  🐣🐰🐣 Happy Easter 🐣🐰🐣

I  haven't posted much this year as we haven't been away and I haven't had many wines at home. Sadly my Mum and step-dad will not be able to come as my Mum is unwell, she has been ill for a couple of years and is now receiving palative care at home. 

But I have put our Easter decorations out as our son, his girlfriend, our daughter and son-in-law are with us for dinner. 

My twisted hazelnut branch which was from my Grandmother's tree is on our mantle as always decorated with eggs. 

I've hung my ornaments on my metal tree along with a few more eggs. I do love this tree as I can display various ornaments at different times of the year. 

When visiting my husband's aunt recently she gave me a very quirky dog ornament. I had admired it on our previous visits and she gave it to me as I was the only person who had ever liked it. I love it as it is but Hubby managed to get some candles which we'll light later. What do you think, love it or not to your liking? 

My cactus are in flower which is very strange as they flowered early December so I thought they were Christmas ones but they look beautiful at the moment.

Hubby and I are going to Birmingham this week to The Wine Society's 150th tastings on tour. We're staying overnight too which will be a nice change.

Wishing you all a very Happy Easter 🐣

January Wine Tasting

Last month was the first wine tasting of 2024, I can't believe we have now been doing these tastings for ten years. I know for certain everyone's' tastes have changed, so has their wine buying. 

I began hosting wine tastings when our scout group celebrated its 100th birthday and during 2014 Hubby and I presented 100 wines for the adults in our Group to enjoy. It has been an amazing success. This is the link to my final post summing up our year of tasting - Grande Finale - you'll find links to all the 100 tastings there too.

Our tasting set up in our Scout HQ

So back to now and our January 2024 tasting which was a mixture of new discoveries and a little bit of comparing. We had two sparkling wines, one to begin and one to finish, with five whites and five reds in between. Our selection was mainly from Morrison's with a couple of wines from Tesco and Aldi.

Our sparkling white wine was Radacini Blanc de Noir  Morrison's £6.00. I certainly haven't tried a Blanc de Noir made from Cabernet Sauvignon before and it was my first sparkling wine from Moldova.

Moldova has a large production of wine which was previously been supplied to the former USSR. With markets changing these wines are now becoming seen in many European countries. Radacini is made using the charmat method, also called cuvé close or the tank method. The grape juice is mixed in stainless steel pressurised tanks with sugar and yeast so the fermentation occurs in a closed system. As the carbon dioxide cannot escape it is dissolved into the wine producing the bubbles.

Everyone enjoyed this wine with its cherry and apple aromas which were also in its flavour along with melon and a hint of white pepper. With slight acidity this was a very enjoyable glass of bubbly. 

Our white selection began with a Sauvignon Blanc following through to comparing two Chardonnay wines. There was quite a mixed opinion on a few of the selections. 

McGuigan Gold Label Sauvignon Blanc - Morrison's £7.50 

Having previously included McGuigan red wines I thought it would be good to try a white, especially a Sauvignon Blanc which is my favourite grape. With over 100 years, and three generations, of winemaking this Hunter Valley wine promised gooseberries and citrus but I couldn't find any. In fact myself and a few other tasters thought that in a blind tasting this could be thought to be a Chardonnay. 

Alzar (Concha y Toro) Sauvignon Blanc, Pedro Jimenez - Morrison's £7.00

This wine is from South America from one of the biggest wine producers which includes Cono Sur, Trivento and Casillero del Diablo. It was a new for all of us having only previously had Pedro Jimenez sherry from Spain, which is where this grape originates. It is used in Chile to make a clear spirit called pisco - something to look out for as I have not heard or seen this before. I really enjoyed this wine, it had the soft characteristics of Sauvignon Blanc with a slight sweetness on the finish, I think this would match a cheese platter very well especially if Manchengo cheese was included. 

Verdeca - Morrison's Best £6.50

A white grape with greenness which you could see in the glass this wine also included some Sauvignon Blanc and Malvasia Bianco (a grape found in the Canary Islands, Maderia and Balearic Islands). From Puglia, the heel of Italy, this Verdeca had been oaked for three months which gave is a light vanilla flavour along with figs and lemon citrus. It was a new wine to most and the general thoughts were although nice it was more of a summer white enjoyed in warmer weather, which matches exactly to its origin.

.

Grand Conseiller Bouchard Aine et Fils Chardoinnay - Tesco £8.50

The first of our comparison Chardonnay wines was from Burgundy in France, a Beaune appellation that was granted in 2009. The wine house itself was started in the mid 1800s , already 5th generation winemakers they went on to found a winemaking school. Et Fils in the name refers to the continuing generations (sons) of winemakers. I'm unsure as to whether this was oaked as there was a very slight vanilla flavour but it was predominantly full of honey, candies fruits with floral notes. 

Trapiche Reserve Chardonnay - Tesco £7.25

Our second comparison, and final white wine, was from Argentina and had been aged in French and American oak. Grown at high altitude on the foot hills of the Andes mountains this wine had plenty of rich flavours. Full of brioche, pear and lemon it was a delicious Chardonnay and my preferred one of the two although they were very similar despite being grown and produce in very different climates. 

Our red selection also included a comparison which we began with, two Merlot wines. 

Apothic Merlot - Tesco £8.50

A few of our tasters really enjoy Californian wines especially Merlot so this was a perfect wine to include, they loved it. Merlot grape is a midnight blue in colour which the winemakers mirrored in their labelling. The name Apothic derives from Apothica, a 13th century European winemakers sanctuary for blending wines. This New World Merlot was full of  dark fruits, especially blackberries and vanilla. A new label to all our tasters but one I know they will be seeking out. 

Luis Felipe Edwards Merlot - Tesco £8.50

Our second Merlot was still New World in the Americas but more southerly. This winemaking family began in 1976 and with over 1850 hectares of estates produces Chilean wine for the world market that had a boost in 1990. This red was quite similar to the first Merlot but had added flavours of plums and cherries, enhanced by plenty of vanilla on its lengthy finish. It's hard to say which Merlot was preferred as both were very much enjoyed by everyone. 

Pata Negra Rioja Tempranillo - Morrison's £7.50

Not a wine for me but loved by my Hubby this Tempranillo Rioja was packed with dark red fruits, cloves and vanilla. Rioja, in Spain, has three main areas; alta, alavesa and oriental, influenced by the climates of the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Oriental (inland) respectively. This wine was produced on the alavesa area benefiting very hot and extreme cold climate. It had been oaked for 18 months in French and American barrels. 

Campo Viejo Rioja Garnacha - Morrison's £7.50

It isn't Rioja wine I can't take to it is the Tempanillo grape so finding this Rioja made from Granacha was perfect for me. Made by Spain's leading producer and part of the Pernod Richard group this wine is available everywhere, it's very vibrant labelling certainly stands out in the wine aisles. I much preferred this wine, plenty of strawberries, raspberries and cherries with a soft violet floral high note. If only all Rioja were made of this grape ... for me anyway. 

Colpasso Appassimento Nero d'Avola - Morrison's £8.00

Our final red was from Italy, with a beautiful tiled label tributed to Greek mythology, specifically Dionysus the God of winemaking, grape harvest and dance. The best grapes for this wine are picked mid September and dried for 3-4 weeks, after which they are fermented. The remaining grapes are left on the vines until well ripened when they are picked and also fermented. The two fermented wines are then blended together to make this Colpasso Appassimento. Of all the reds we tasted this had the most spice and pepperiness, it wasn't overpowering and added depth to the rich cherry flavours. 

Our final red was a Sparkling Shiraz, saved until last as a totally new wine to everyone, including myself and Hubby. We discovered this wine in Aldi £6.99 .... and to be brutally honest it can stay there. It isn't often I am lost to find something positive in a glass of wine but this left me shaking my head and was so disappointing. 

It was difficult to discover any details about this wine which, in hindsight, should have been a warning. Although black cherries, redcurrants and liqueur chocolate was mentioned as flavours all that came through was such a chemical flavour, no-one liked it at all. 

We certainly had another fun evening discovering more about wine and our preferred tastes. I know there will be some wines purchased and some left on the shelf but that's the fun of our tastings ... roll on the next one when I have a few surprises in mind!

Tredegar House

Newport, South Wales, is where you'll find Tredegar House, a National Trust property that sits in parkland just off the M4 motorway.

Walking through the beautiful stables and outer buildings it's the striking intricate gates that greet you adding to the grand impression of the 17th century red brick house.

It was Sir William Morgan in 1670 who developed this manor house into an extensive mansion and the next generations of the Morgan family extended the estate to include many of the South Wales mines. The mines were leased making vast sums of money over subsequent decades but by the mus 1800s Sir Charles Morgan MP was accused of mistreating his tennants including the miners.

Godfrey Morgan inherited Tredegar House in the 1870s, he was known for giving away mych of the land and reducing rent for his tennants. His great nephew was the last Morgan to own the house. As a result in his extravagant lifestyle and mounting debts the house was sold after his death in 1949.

Tredegar House became a Catholic girls school and was then purchased by Newport Council in the 1970s who since the early 2010s have leased the house to the National Trust whilst keeping the parkland open to the public.

As you wander through the house you pass through various eras and can see evidence of each generations changes. The rooms are magnificent, in particular the ornate wooden panels and high ceilings.

Leaving the opulent upstairs of the house the servants corridor holds a great insight into the past. High on the walls along the length of the corridor are a selection of bells, each with a slightly different sound, each relating to one of the upstsirs room and rung when a servant is required.

The most popular room in the house is not upstairs but downstairs, it's the Housekeepers room. It gives a definite impression of who was in charge abd had a few luxuries.

The final part of the house was quite a surprise, a tudor dining room with beautiful windows looking over the courtyard. This is the oldest part of Tredegar House being part of the original Tudor House.